| 
|
|
From 1971 till 1983 Dom - 'HRH
'Boum' the Drummer himself' - has been performing throughout France.
He was one of the guys to call for any emergency around Paris.
'I loved it since I didn't have to keep performing in the same
club 6 - 7 nights a week, week in week out. I was constantly working
all around the place in different settings'.
My favorite was drumming in the world famous 'CRAZY HORSE SALON'
~ for seven years. Great gig.. good money, good musicians.. the
repertoire was anything from Steely Dan to George Benson, Blood
Sweat & Tears, Chicago, brazilian, jazz, funk.. brilliant!
Several house bands performed there during this period, but I
was always called to replace the in-house drummer.' In 1980
he joined the French star Patrick Sebastien for one and a half
years prior to creating the drug rehabilitation center Narconon
France which has been in operation for the next 15 years. Narconon
uses natural means of detoxification and has an astonishing percentage
of success world wide. Click here
for Narconon UK.
He was at this time the band leader
of the 'in' club 'La Boulangerie des Tuilleries', rue du Frg St
Honore, where his trio supported many french stars.
In 1983 Dom created
L'Ecole du Rythme ( The School of Rhythm) which by 1986 had become
the biggest private music school in France. By 1992, with only 12
members of staff including 6 full time teachers, the school was
signing up 2000 plus students a year.
'It was a total
success. I didn't plan it that way at all. In fact I began by teaching
a few students in my flat in 1982 and it just grew from there..
Just like that...0 to 80 drum students within 6 months ..I was teaching
7 days a week then turned around one day to find myself with no
more time to rehears or gig. So, I trained and hired a couple of
my students, but it became worse because they were good too. We
were having calls for piano, guitar courses, etc... so I hired other
teachers for these instruments.. and it became a full operation.
We moved to larger premises, and voila!... I had become a manager!
I loved it too,
because the school was a meeting point for several hundred people
every week. The staff were very motivated and working their butts
off to keep it happening. We organized a rock opera every year with
the students as performers and it was an immense success. I think
the lowest audience attendance was 350..- that's a lot for a 4 year
old school of music ...
In 1992/93 things
went in a direction that I did not approve of and I had no real
choice but to go back to my own personal musical career as a full
time musician. Even though I am happy in what I am doing now, I
still have a lot of admiration and respect for the guys who had
been working with me during those years at l'Ecole du rythme. For
the students, it was an island of peace and happiness in the chaotic
world of Parisian professionals. Many of these students were true
friends and I miss them.'
In August 1985, Dom
established the first WORLD RECORD for the longest drum solo ~ registered
in the Guinness Book of Records 1986. He played for 24hours 40 mins
with 10mins break every 5 hours. The event was held in the middle
of the bay of La Baule, coast of Britany, on the catamaran 'JAZ'
of Bruno Peyron. The previous year this Vessel had come in second
at the 'Rhum Race'. The event (Dom's) made the first page of 10
National newspapers, appeared in more than 25 European magazines,
as well as on radio and TV shows in France and Luxemburg.
In 1995, Dom moved
to London, where he created covers band 'Freespirit'
with Anglo/Jamaican singer Val Kelly. Freespirit has since performed
more than 1500 gigs worldwide in the UK, Lebanon, Thailand, Malaysia,
Spain, Oman, Italy, Ethiopia and France.
Val and Dom are now working on their original project 'Vall'.
|
|
